Babar
Babar is a Canadian/French animated television series produced in Toronto, Canada by Nelvana Limited and The Clifford Ross Company. It premiered in 1989 on CBC and HBO, and subsequently, on HBO and Qubo, had aired reruns of the show.2 The series is based on Jean de Brunhoff's original Babar ''books, and was Nelvana's first international co-production. The series' 78 episodes have been broadcast in 30 languages in over 150 countries. While the French author Laurent de Brunhoff pronounces the name Babar as "BUH-bar", the series in its first five seasons pronounces the name as "BAB-bar".3 In 2010, a computer-animated sequel series spin-off of ''Babar titled Babar and the Adventures of Badou was launched. The new series focuses on a majority of new characters. In 2019, Treehouse TV brought back the series to rerun on Treehouse TV along with shows like The Backyardigans, Blue's Clues, Dinopaws, etc. Cast * Gordon Pinsent as King Babar * Dawn Greenhalgh as Queen Celeste * Lea-Helen Weir as Flora #2 (1990–1991) * Stuart Stone as Young Arthur (1989) / Alexander #2 (1990–1991) * Lisa Yamanaka as Flora #1 (1989) / Isabelle (1990–1991) * Jeff Pustil as Zephir * Paul Haddad as Uncle Arthur * Stephen Ouimette as Pompadour * Elizabeth Hanna as Madame * Allen Stewart-Coates as Lord Rataxes * Corrine Koslo as Lady Rataxes * John Stocker as Basil * Chris Wiggins as Cornelius * Noah Godfrey as Victor (1990–1991) * Benjamin Barrett as Pom (1990–1991) * Gavin Magrath as Young Babar (1989) * Tara Charendoff as Young Celeste (1989) * Bobby Becken as Pom (1989) * Amos Crawley as Alexander #1 (1989) * Dan Hennessey as Chef Truffles Reception Critic reception David Knox at TV Tonight commented on the subject of death and the way it is depicted in Children's Television, citing the pilot of Babar as an example, "This week ABC replayed the pilot episode of the animated series in which the baby elephant loses his mother to a hunter after being shot by a rifle. Produced by a Canadian company in 1989 it doesn't shy away from the separation of mother and child, as written in the original Babar the Elephant stories." An ABC spokesperson told TV Tonight that ABC had carefully considered the content which aired at 3:30 p.m. EST on ABC2 for a G-rated audience, ABC in Australia (2 July 1990 - 3 June 2012) "At no point in the sequence was there any depiction of blood or wounds, and the depiction of the rifle being used was very careful and discreet. The simple animation style reduced the level of detail of the rifle and the action. While there was a sense of threat and menace associated with the hunter and his use of violence, having regard to the animation style, the level of visual detail, and the stylized manner in which the action was depicted, Audience and Consumer Affairs considers that this sense of threat and menace was very low. The violence in the sequence was very discreetly implied, and was not gratuitous as it was a pivotal, dramatic moment of great significance to the story."12 Other reception Charles Solomon of The Los Angeles Times gave a review of Babar's first few episodes, "The designs for the characters and the simple animation capture the essence of Jean de Brunhoff's understated watercolor illustrations. The artists occasionally seem to lose their sense of the characters' size and weight: The young Babar jumps and climbs in ways that seem very unelephantlike (but very few elephants wear uniforms and crowns, as the adult Babar does). As the voice of Babar, Gordon Pinsent gives the elephant king a reassuring presence and keeps the mildly didactic stories from bogging down in moralizing. Child actors provide the voices for the young Babar and his friends, which makes the show sound a lot like a "Peanuts" special at times. Created by the Canadian Nelvana studio—the producers of the entertaining "My Pet Monster"--"Babar" manages to be endearing without sliding into the saccharine cutesiness of Hello Kitty. Parents with children in the 4-to-10-year-old range should plan on setting their VCRs: The kids will probably want to watch Babar more than once."13 Suitable / good reception by Common Sense Media Common Sense Media finds the series suitable for viewers aged 4 and up, and has given the series 4 stars of 5 adding, "Babar is a good role model who promotes sharing and getting along with others."14 They continued to say that Parents Need to Know that "Although the show is an ideal pick for preschoolers, most kids will probably outgrow it by the time they're 7". The review ended by saying, "Many shows adapted from books tend to move at a slow pace. But Babar provides enough adventure and silliness to keep even the most active preschooler engaged. As an extra plus, the music is beautifully orchestrated. Babar exemplifies the lesson that all of us are the same on the inside. These elephants hold their trunks high, but they also know that money doesn't conquer all. Many kids' shows depict well-off characters as villainous and/or gluttonous; Babar shows kids that wealth doesn't necessarily equate to greed."14 Episodes Main article: List of Babar episodes Category:Shows Category:TV Show Category:Article stubs Category:Media Category:Television series by Nelvana Category:CBC Shows